In my Tampa office, parents come to me all of the time and say they want “sole custody.” Maybe they are having an argument with the other parent. Maybe they just don’t get along. So parents figure that the solution is to be the only one to have decision making authority over their child.
In the video below, social worker Gary Direnfeld challenges the assumptions behind requests for sole custody.
Any Florida parent who is going through a divorce with children or otherwise dealing with child custody issues will need to have a parenting plan. A parenting plan is document that is either agreed upon by the parents or created by a judge that sets out each parents’ rights and responsibilities. The Sixth Judicial Circuit (Pinellas and Pasco Counties) further describes a parenting plan as follows:
It is the public policy of this state to assure that each minor child has frequent and continuing contact with both parents after the parents separate or the marriage of the parties is dissolved and to encourage parents to share the rights and responsibilities, and joys, of childrearing. Florida Statutes, section 61.13(2)(c).
A parenting plan is a document developed and agreed to by the parents of a minor child, and approved by the court, or if the parents cannot agree, established by the court, which governs the relationship between the parents regarding the child (encompassing “custody”, “parental responsibility”, and “visitation”). A parenting plan may address issues such as the child’s education, health care, and physical, social, and emotional well-being, and must include a time-sharing schedule. The parenting plan must take into account the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act, the International Child Abduction Remedies Act, the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act, and the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction when addressing jurisdictional issues.
For purposes of establishing or modifying parental responsibility and creating, developing, approving, or modifying a parenting plan, including a time-sharing schedule, which governs each parent’s relationship with his or her minor child and the relationship between each parent with regard to his or her minor child, the best interest of the child shall be the primary consideration.
Any parenting plan approved by a court must address the following issues:
May a Florida Family Law Court deny a parent custody rights solely because he or she has HIV or AIDS?
According to section 61.13(6), Florida Statutes, the answer is no, but the court may take some actions.
There has been a lot of press lately about efforts to reform Florida’s alimony laws. As discussed on this blog, Senate Bill 718 (which primarily deals with alimony reform) passed the Florida House by a wide margin (85 Yeas versus 31 Nays) and, since it had also passed the Florida Senate, will be going to Governor Rick Scott for his signature.
Update: Governor Scott Vetoes Senate Bill 718
One area that may be even more significant, but has not received as much coverage, is language in Senate Bill 718 that reforms Florida’s child custody laws. Currently, there is no presumption in favor of or against any child custody schedule, including a 50/50 split custody (known as equal time-sharing). Senate Bill 718, however, adds language to section 61.13 of the Florida Statutes that seems to make a strong presumption in favor of equal time-sharing.
The text of the child custody provisions of Senate Bill 718 is reproduced below (deleted language is stricken while new language is underlined):
“Parental responsibility” is the authority to make decisions regarding your child’s healthcare, religion, education, and other issues unique to your family. You may have heard parental responsibility referred to as “legal custody,” though this term is no longer used in Florida.
Courts will generally order one of three possibilities for parental responsibility:
